And Maggie was so oppressed by this dreadful destiny that she had no spirit for a retort.

"Well, you are not very forward," retorted Maggie, hastily reaching her own pink cotton gown, and looking at Lucy’s light-brown hair brushed back in curly disorder.

Mr. Tulliver, not without a particular reason, had abstained from a seventh recital of the cool retort by which Riley had shown himself too many for Dix, and how Wakem had had his comb cut for once in his life, now the business of the dam had been settled by arbitration, and how there never would have been any dispute at all about the height of water if everybody was what they should be, and Old Harry hadn’t made the lawyers.

There are no more uses of "retort" in the book.

Show samples from other sources

She wanted to retort that he that he sounded more foolish than he looked, but she made herself count to ten and thought better of it.